Atari is celebrating its 50th anniversary by combining NFTs with lootboxes
The ‘GFT’ collection is being created to celebrate its 50th anniversary
Atari is celebrating its 50th anniversary by combining NFTs with lootboxes.
The company is teaming up with Republic Realm, “one of the most active developers of the metaverse and NFT ecosystem”, to sell off a collection that is being dubbed ‘GFTs’.
The collection is described as containing ‘giftable’ NFTs which initially appear as gift-wrapped boxes, with no indication as to what’s inside, which Atari says makes them ideal for gifting to others.
On a specific date, the NFT will then ‘unwrap’ to show various different NFTs based on titles from Atari’s 50-year history.
Buyers will then find out on that date if their GFTs are “common, rare or epic”. According to the collection’s website, there’s a less than 5% chance a purchaser’s NFT will be “rare”, and a less than 1% chance it will be “epic”.
The scheme is encouraging people to buy multiple GFTs, promising that anyone who buys four or more will unlock the ability to buy “a fifth surprise GFT”.
GFT holders will then be eligible to compete in game competitions, with top scores offering access to special rewards. They’ll also have access to a Discord server where they can trade with others.
It’s also claimed that GFT owners will have access to “more to come in the metaverse”, though there’s no explanation as to what exactly this means, or Atari’s specific definition of the metaverse.
Atari CEO Wade Rosen said in a statement: “The Atari brand is synonymous with video games, and video gaming is the backbone of the metaverse. What better way to commemorate Atari’s 50th anniversary than by ushering in a new era of technological innovation while also honoring the brand that launched the modern video game industry?”
Numerous game companies have already started selling digital items as NFTs, including Konami and Ubisoft, though this has attracted criticism from some due to the format’s high carbon footprint and what many perceive to be cynical implementation.
Square Enix was the most recent high-profile games publisher to express its enthusiasm for the technology trends.
In a New Year letter published during the holiday break, president Yosuke Matsuda committed to making blockchain and NFT games a part of its games portfolio.
Earlier this month Sega registered a trademark for ‘Sega NFT’, while prolific video games voice actor Troy Baker announced that he was teaming up with Voiceverse NFT, which claims it will let people buy AI voices as NFTs.
Despite the apparent surge in NFT schemes, a recent GDC survey of over 2700 game developers showed that 70% have no interest in implementing NFTs in their games.
